Trust Comes From Blood, Sweat, or Tears

When can you completely trust someone?

How do you know that they mean what they say and will do what they said they would?

A fault/feature of my DNA is that I’m a trusting person by default. My default gear is to help in any way I can to anyone who asks.

But, as you get older and look in the rearview mirror, you start to question decisions and learn from your mistakes.

The other day as I cruised down the road with the sunroof open and the windows down, I began thinking about how would I know if I could trust people in the world. To what level are new friends to be trusted with the deepest secrets and the vital commitments?

I’m still noodling on this notion, but I think for me at this point in my years until we’ve shared blood, sweat, or tears I’m not sure I can fully trust anyone.

I came to this by thinking about what things my friends who I would trust with everything share with me. It isn’t a matter of how long I’ve known them or how much time we spend together.

I can think of several friends that all it would take is a text of “I need help,” and they’d be on a plane and beside my as quickly as they could.

The thing about blood, sweat, or tears is that it is a step that shows you’ve been through more than the standard life together. It might be an intense weekend of learning in the thorny Texas countryside, a long night of conversation around a fire or a traumatic event.

I’m not sure that this is the only way to trust fully, but as new people enter my life and I wonder if they are on entirely on my side or not I'm more careful because I’ve been burned too many times.

Moving forward with caution, but always moving forward.